If you could change the dates, would you?

[mshanson3121]

Well....

Here we are, 33 days out from leaving for our trip, and we got rather upsetting news yesterday, that as of right now due to cutbacks, my husband's teaching position is not being renewed. We're upset, but he does at least have another job to fall back on, though unfortunately it pays nothing close to what teaching did. The trip is all paid for, thank heavens for that.

But this is the thought that went through my mind: we chose the dates we did (last week of June/first of July) due to my husband's teaching schedule. Horribly hot and crowded, we knew that, but we had no other real options. With his other job, we basically had our choice of dates - we could go anytime we wanted: September, October, December thru March (November is out). Though since we're driving to Florida, the fall would be preferable since we'd run the risk of having to drive through snowstorms the first half.

Now, I don't even know if we could switch the trip, and even if we would want to - I mean the kids know about it and they're counting down. To try and delay it even a few months could be total mutiny, lol. But I'm curious, if you were in our shoes, and it was an option, would you try and switch?

ETA: We are staying off-site, so it's a matter of switching the rental dates with the homeowner, and then my MIL/FIL would have to change their flights with Southwest.

 

[sharonabe]

If the kids can go in Sept and you can get free dining, I think I would at least consider it. It's at least worth a call to Disney to see what you could get. You can "sell" it to the kids by saying you get to eat whatever you want with free dining. Perhaps you get a better resort or room for less money. And the biggest selling point is LOWER crowds.

 

[mom2AidanAndEli]

Is it possible his teaching position could be reinstated? Will he be looking for another teaching position? If you put it off and either of those things happens, then what? Would that mean cancelling the whole thing?

As much as the later trips sounds better, I don't know that I'd risk it.

 

[cakebaker]

I have a family of teachers and know first hand how upsetting it is to lose your position due to cutbacks. So sorry to see that happen to you.

Is it possible that he'd find another position over the summer? This happened to my daughter last year. She was not rehired due to cuts. So making lemonade out of lemons, we scheduled our trip for August, about the time school would start.

A week before we were leaving she got a new teaching position and ended up not getting to go.

Regardless, unless it was a financial disaster to spend the money and you're 100% sure he won't get another position-I would not cancel. It's stressful enough on everyone as it is to lose your job and if he did get another job and you had to cancel again?? Personally, I wouldn't be able to stand disappointing the kids- but only you know if you can afford to do it.

 

[SillySallySews]

I would just go. We've had to cancel and reschedule Disney due to my husband's job and breaking that news to the kids wasn't fun. Most of my kids are young though. I suppose if they were older it might've been easier. We've done Disney at the end of June the last three years and yes, it's hot and crowded but totally manageable if your expectations are realistic.

 

[Lucius Best]

You could probably save some money, and avoid a lot crowds, if you moved your June/July trip to a low crowd period like September or January. That's probably what I would do. Your trip is still over a month away, kids might be upset, but you can do so much more is a low crowd period. But I would hesitate if there's a good chance he can find another position, the last thing you'd want to do is delay the trip, and then your husband gets a new job and you have to postpone again.

 

[mshanson3121]

Great insight, thank you guys. The kids are young, and yes, they'd be very upset. They are so looking forward to this trip.

We don't know for sure yet what's going to happen. He teaches at college, and right now his department has not renewed their contract with the college, so as of now, his contract is done June 19th. However, they did say that there's a chance negotiations are just lagging and that they may come back with a late contract, in which case he would still have a job, but we may not find out until June or even into July. If they do renew the contract, there's still a chance he may have to do a competition for the job, based on cutbacks. If he has to do a competition, we could be screwed, because there's a chance the job competition will be while we're away. He has a meeting with the department head on Friday, and we hope to know more, then.

So I guess yeah, there's still a chance he could be teaching.

 

[mom2rtk]

Nobody here knows your financial situation well enough to give a definitive answer. But in general, if you have substantial nonrefundable costs involved, just go. The kids are unlikely to care enough about dining to want to delay for free dining. The heat certainly isn't going to be any better in September.

With things in flux, you don't really want a trip looming to complicate other potential job opportunities.

Good luck. I hope he finds a better job quickly.

 

[Pappa Bear]

If weather is a consideration then do not expect September to be a lot cooler or less humid. I have never been during the summer months but I can guarantee you that September is HOT and HUMID as we have been several times during that month.

Based strictly on what you have posted I would be very leery about changing my trip dates at this point. It might be best to wait until after his Friday meeting before making a decision. You have listed way too many variables to make a decision right now IMHO. Good luck with whatever you end up deciding as your husband's job loss was a real kick in the pants.

 

[lovndisney12]

Teacher family here too and I say stick with your dates. It sounds like you are staying off site so FD isn't an option. The only reason to change would be if the dates conflict with the opportunity for your DH to keep his job as you mentioned he might have to "compete" which would be scheduled during your current dates. Hopefully you will have that answer within the next week. It sounds like there could be a chance he will be teaching again next year.

I think in light of the disappointment in having the position cut, your family needs a little WDW magic right now! As you state, your kids are already starting to count down and would be disappointed - and little kids have a hard time comprehending waiting for what might be a few extra "benefits" - cooler weather, lower crowds, etc.

 

[ArwenMarie]

Sorry about your husband's job.

I would just stick with your original plans, especially if it's all paid for. Plus, you did all of the planning for it now.

As far as weather, it doesn't substantially cool down until November.

 

[BalooPA]

Boy, do I feel your pain! We are now on our 3rd reschedule of a trip that was originally planned for May 2014. The first postponement was due to a financial hardship, so we rescheduled for September 2014. At that time, I was a contractor, and the company I worked for lost the contract. We postponed the trip to March 2015, and then a week after we postponed, I was hired as a permanent employee when all of the other contractors were released. Flash foward to January 2015, and I was offered a new job back home for more money, which necessitated a cross-country move in February. Even though the trip was already paid, we decided that going on vacation just a couple of weeks after moving was not a good idea, so we have now postponed again until September 2015. 120 days away today, and we're looking to be on track to finally get this trip in!

 

[mickeymom629]

Sorry to hear about your husband and, hope all goes well with his job situation. I was curious as to whether you are not concerned about taking your kids out of school (not judging you because I did that way back when ).

I guess I would say go with the plan and enjoy your summer vacation!

 

[mshanson3121]

Sorry to hear about your husband and, hope all goes well with his job situation. I was curious as to whether you are not concerned about taking your kids out of school (not judging you because I did that way back when ).

I guess I would say go with the plan and enjoy your summer vacation!

Actually, school is not a concern since we homeschool One of the perks, lol. But even if we didn't, in the elementary years, I wouldn't give it a second thought.

 

[mickeymom629]

In my last post, I said go with the plan because it's planned, but we have also done many summer trips and, on the last one, I said never again because of the heat! Just the last few days here in MD have been so hot and humid and I pictured myself enjoying Disney World in this heat...NOT! I can barely stand to walk the dog when it's hot (and I love walking!!) So, I totally understand your concern about wanting to choose another month because of the weather!